July 27, 2024

By Rich Leitch

Canadian Premier Baseball League

The Ottawa-Nepean Canadians organization, long a force in the province, has joined the Canadian Premier Baseball League.

The Canadians will join for the 2024-2025 season and will field teams at the 13U, 14U, 15U, 16U and 18U levels.

ONC is under new leadership, effective Nov. 1, with their day-to-day operations on both the baseball and business side taken over by T.J. Burton (Ottawa, Ont.). Burton has been in pro ball for 24 years. For the last 14 years his focus has been youth baseball at the grassroots and high-performance levels with the Toronto Blue Jays. He was an 18th round draft by Cleveland from the Ottawa White Sox, pitching nine seasons in the Houston Astros and Cleveland systems.

Burton was responsible for Tournament 12 and the current Canadian Futures Showcase as tournament director of the popular high school showcase which brings together the best high school players from coast to coast.

The Canadians have a rich history in Ottawa, spanning 51 years, many alumni have been drafted, played professional baseball, achieved post-secondary success in Canada and the U.S., and represented Canada on the Junior National and Senior National teams.

Graduates include the likes of ...

_ INF Chris Bisson (Ottawa, Ont.), a fourth-round San Diego Padres draft in 2010 from Kentucky, who played four seasons.

_ OF Sebastien Boucher (Gatineau, Que.) drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the seventh round in 2004 from Bethune-Cookman University who played 11 seasons or pro ball, four in the Baltimore Orioles and Mariners organizations.

Ex-Pirate and Expo OF-1B Doug Frobel was inducted into the Ottawa-Nepean Canadians Hall of Fame.

_ Former Pittsburgh Pirates, Montreal Expos and Cleveland OF-1B Doug Frobel (Ottawa, Ont.), who played 268 games in the majors over five seasons in a career that included 11 seasons in the minors.

_ INF Phil Franko (Nepean, Ont.) who signed as a free agent walking off the field at Shea Stadium with the Minnesota Twins after playing at John Jay College.

_ LHP Mike Kusiewicz (Nepean, Ont.) an eighth-round pick of the Colorado Rockies, who pitched 10 years in the minors and won an ERA title at age 18 in the class-A South Atlantic League.

_ RHP Dave MacQuarrie (Ottawa, Ont.) who signed as a free agent and pitched five seasons in the Expos system.

_ OF Matt McCarney (Kanata, Ont.) who was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2006, did not sign and played one season with the New York Mets system.

_ 1B Trevvy Mosley who played independent ball with the Johnstown Johnnies in 2000, after playing at Pace University.

And the red Canadians uniform was the one RHP Peter Hoy (Cardinal, Ont.) chose to wear after his playing days in the Boston Red Sox organization -- including five games with Boston and LeMoyne College.

Plus learned ones like Dr. Stephen Osterer (Nepean, Ont.) who graduated from Cornell University and is now the director of pitching development with the Cleveland Guardians and Dr. Jason Kiser (Carleton Place, Ont.) who played at Sienna University.

Most played for founder Art Neilsen and Don Campbell.

ONC been a fixture in the nation’s capital diamond community and in New York State always competing at a high level across all age groups.

“I am excited for ONC to start this new journey in the CPBL,” said Burton. “Being a part of the best league in Canada will push our players and coaches to work hard everyday while competing against some of the best talent in the country.”

Said CPBL president, Chris Robinson: “As a league we are excited to expand our footprint in Eastern Ontario. TJ’s reputation and impact on amateur ball in our country over the past decade and a half has been felt coast to coast and adding a baseball mind to our league like this will only make our product stronger.”

The league also includes Academie Baseball Canada, Fieldhouse Pirates, Great Lake Canadians, Ontario Astros, Ontario Blue Jays, Ontario Nationals, Ontario Royals, Terriers, Toronto Mets, Toronto Titans, Watson Elite (who are merging with the Ottawa Knights this fall) and Windsor Selects at 14U minor, 14U, 15U, 16U, 17U and 18U age groups.